CSI can assist landowners and non-profit land trusts in the preparation of Easement Documentation Reports (EDRs) for Conservation Easements. Such reports involve species and natural community inventories to establish the floral/faunal baseline conditions of a property and may be required at the time the land is enrolled in the easement.

Voluntary land conservation using a Conservation Easement can have several major tax benefits. A Conservation Easement lowers the value of your land by removing its development potential. The IRS treats this reduction in value as a "charitable event" or contribution to the non-profit land trust. A Conservation Easement can also have important estate tax benefits. The Taxpayer Relief Act, signed into law on August 5, 1997 includes the first new private, voluntary tax incentive for land conservation in over a decade.

For detailed information on Conservation Easements, visit the Land Trust Alliance website.